


Burning Desire

by cursed_core



Series: The Marvel Archives [4]
Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Magnus Archives (Podcast), X-Men (Movieverse)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:33:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26001964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cursed_core/pseuds/cursed_core
Summary: Dedication in one of it's purest forms
Series: The Marvel Archives [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1876885
Kudos: 4





	Burning Desire

Jean Grey sits under a tree away from the bustling students walking around the campus of Xaiver’s School, their thoughts blur around her blending with the blinding sun. With the pounding headache of other people thinking too loudly (and bright light) she buries her face into the book she is trying to read. _The Lightless Flame needs you to fe-_. Out of nowhere the book is taken from her, with a silver headed Pietro reading it outloud. “The lightless flame needs you to feed it. Sacrifice and a rebirth through death.” He pauses looking at Jean, who glares at him with pure annoyance. “What is this talking about?”

“It is nothing, just give it back please!” She tries to focus on his own thoughts but they sound like a record that skips due to his super speed.

“Oh, defensive over a book are we? Come on, Jean you can tell me.”

“How about you go fuck yourself.” She jumps up taking the book from his hands. “None of this is your business.”

“I will make you a deal. I will give you a lighter every single day until you tell me… as I know you have a collection.” Jean rolls her eyes. “I am going to do that whether you give a response or not.”

“I would rather you didn’t. It is unnecessary of you do.”

Pietro goes to poke her cheek but quickly withdraws his hand. “Woah you are a little heated there. Are you feeling okay?”

“I am fine.”

“Bu-”

“ _I said I am fine._ ” The tone of her voice is in the realm of ‘leave me the fuck alone’ or ‘back the fuck up’. Pietro took it as both and backed up. “Great. Now I am going to class.”

The rest of the day blurred in a simplicity that lent itself well to boredom so instead of focusing on school work or on the lectures Jean daydreamed about flames with no sources dancing around her. Despite it only being daydreams she could feel the heat prickle her skin in a comforting way. The flames and heat feels truly like a warm embrace of someone that she has known for years. The bell of the school echoing ripped her out of her day dream back to the cold sterile reality that exists in the bland monochromatic lecture hall. Jean stands to leave the class, walking out quickly. She doesn’t notice or chose to ignore the looks of concern from other students from the partially melted chair she left in her wake. She reached her dorm, managing to tune out every single student into a dull rhythmic thud of a drum beat. Completely exhausted Jean tosses herself into bed, finally letting herself truly dream of that brimstone and fire.

Hours later well past sunset Pietro knocks on her dorm door and when she predictably doesn’t respond he walks in, Jean still passed out. He hesitantly shakes her awake trying to be quick with the even more intense heat radiating off of her. As soon as his freezing in comparison skin touches her arm she jumps awake and back into a wall. Pietro speaks first. “Hey I brought that lighter I promised.” 

He holds it out and she gently takes it. “Can you turn on a light?” He does so without seemingly moving and a cheeky grin plastered on his face appears. “You really didn’t have to.”

“Look. I don’t know what is going but I am trying to understand, okay?” She holds the very clear lighter up to the light getting mesmerized by the colours, tuning him out. “...Jean?”

She snaps back to reality. “Uh yeah. I will explain… meet me at three in the morning on the school steps. It is important, okay?” 

“Whatever you want. But why then?”

“You will understand.” Pietro gives a nod before speeding out of her room, leaving her with the hypnotic lighter. It takes a minute for her to stand for the next moves that need to be done. _According to everything I need to ruin potential before it blossoms. The houses being built near the school should work._ Between the flames the thoughts echo in a very hollow tone as if it is the most boring thing to her. Jean changes into simple clothing of black pants and hoodie, an easy way to blend in with the night as she steps out. Even more so with taking back alleys to the housing development. The brightest place she passes is a twenty four hour gas station with a hazy neon glow as Jean’s thoughts cloud with every single step towards her destination. It doesn’t take long until she finds herself climbing over the fence into the area. The houses looming over her as ghosts made of plywood and paper. _Basically tinder_. With the kindly gifted lighter from Pietro she starts burning until the whole dark area is a brightly lit inferno comparable to walking in the day. As soon as the sirens echo in the distance Jean takes off at a dead sprint, the way she came. Only stopping to duck into that ever hazy gas station. The sirens of the fire trucks fly by with a deafening sound both her and the clerk stand to attention watching them go by. Once the echo retreats Jean browses quickly, ultimately buying a jerry can of gasoline. 

“Hey do you know the time?”

“No watch?” He looks at the screen on the till. “It is two thirty.”

“Thanks.” Jean pays quickly, turning on her heels and hustling back to school which she reaches before Pietro which is another highlight to this day. She paces anxiously waiting for him to show up. When he does she gives him a look to stay at the bottom of the steps. He does and Jean breaks the silence. “Please keep your distance.”

“What is going on?” Pietro’s words were drowned out by Jean removing the lid of the jerry can, pouring it over herself and accepting the vague burning sensation as it soaks through her clothes. He stays rooted to the spot in a panic, speaking again once he sees that lighter in her hands. “Jean whatever this is this isn’t the way.”

“I only told you to be here so someone else wouldn’t find me here. You are truly the last person I wanted to see while alive.” Jean flicks the lighter on immediately catching herself on fire. The screams are echoing across the empty campus after what feels like the longest minute of her entire life the pain numbs and she collapses onto the pavement. Yet she remains on fire at this point the hard crash to the ground also cracks her skull open as the wick effect takes place. Jean’s body lays on the pavement burning for over seven hours. Once she is out naturally officials move her from her spot. Leaving a scorch mark on the ground with some grease splatters that originates from body fat and a traumatized Pietro behind her.

Jean is in a very dark place, standing up to her ankles in a black unidentifiable substance but it does feel like the gasoline she poured over herself without the pain. She starts walking forward towards the heat knowing instinctively that it is where she needs to be. Directly in the center of the lightless flame. It doesn’t take long to reach that point of fire but no flame. Instead of the screaming that echoed this time it was pure laughter. Laughter of someone who has clearly given up important parts of themselves. Laughter that is pure madness. Laughter of the joy that is the next part of her life.

  
  


As soon as she entered those visions she exited them to waking up in a body bag, looking down at herself completely intact. Her escape is through melting out of the the flimsy plastic that was holding her corpse there, much to the shock of the pathologist in the room who was about to unzip her. On a primal instinct Jean lights him on fire with a hint of a smile due to a small realization. As the man burns, cries and screams she realizes that there is only the physical left for her. _My head is finally just mine. No other thoughts may enter._ She leaves the lab, wincing with the brightness of the next day. Jean walks off into the city, grinning from ear to ear when other people on the sidewalk back away from her now much more off putting heat. In her own way she has reached the highest power for her, now something to truly be feared.


End file.
